VERY DISAPPOINTING

A disappointing collection. After the first production "The Woman Who Gave Birth to Rabbits" which is a good listen, it all goes down hill.
Very disappointed as I was hoping for some extraordinary and interesting tales. Not so.

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Not sure...

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

Although I found the true history behind these stories interesting, I could not put up with the silly false regional accents put on by the narrator... she made everyone sound so awkward and brainless, almost like listening to a weird childrens book. I only listening to about 5 stories before giving up. There was something about it that made me really uncomfortable, but mostly the awkward narration...

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A Fantastic Collection!

What made the experience of listening to The Woman Who Gave Birth to Rabbits the most enjoyable?

There are a wide range of stories in this collection and, while some are better than others, most are very good. The collection includes stories about Effie Gray and Dido Elizabeth Belle, two women whose lives I find especially interesting! (Other readers may recognize their stories from the recent films 'Effie' & 'Belle') The different narrators bring to life a variety of characters, with a variety of accents and backgrounds. This makes the audiobook version particularly great!

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Woman Who Gave Birth to Rabbits?

Donogue does a brilliant job of fleshing-out the characters that she encounters, through historical research. The moment where Mary Toft realizes that she is trapped and that her hoax is sure to be found out is unexpectedly moving. Donogue explores the way women's bodies are viewed and abused by society, bringing an uncomfortable conclusion to what would have otherwise been a silly little story. These themes are further explored in 'Cured' which recounts the first experimental attempts at female circumcision, and is very grim and unsettling!

Which character – as performed by the narrators – was your favourite?

The narration of 'My Last Rabbit' and 'Cured' are probably my favorites, as these are my favorite stories in the collection. However 'Revelations' also features a particularly good narrator with a strong Scottish accent.

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

There are many emotionally charged stories in this collection and I found that many of the stories featured particularly moving scenes. It was exciting and interesting, but most of the stories seemed to be desired to inspire shock or outrage.

The description of historical injustices such as those within 'Dido' or 'The Necessity of Burning' really make an impact. Donogue includes comments after each story too, to clarify which details are invented and which are not, and in these sections she usually hammers her point home - just in case any of her readers are too dense to miss it.

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Excellent collection of short stories

This audiobook is a rare treat bring both wonderfully written and perfectly narrated. In fact, this may be the best narration I have come across on an audiobook. I usually avoid short stories as I prefer the grip of a novel, but this is a fantastic set of historically themed stories which I enjoyed so much I finished in two days straight, a record for me, it usually takes me around a month to finish an audiobook!

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